Dispensing device



Oct. 13, 1931. H. BARTENBACH DISPENSING DEVICE Original Filed March 11,1929 Zie l 8252' of Ca INVENTOR BY Iifiartenack ATTORNEY Patented Oct.13, 1931 UNITED STATES PAT OFFICE HERMAN ZBLRTENBAOH, OF PITTSBURGH,PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO AMERICAN TELEPHONE AND TELEGRAPH COMPANY, ACORPORATION OF NEW YORK DISPENSING DEVICE Original application filedMarch 11, 1929, Serial No. 846,026. Divided and this application diedMay 24, 1880. Serial No. 455,448.

This invention relates to apparatus for use gas pressure testing ofcables and the This'application is a division of the appli- 5 cantscopending application filed Mare 11,

1929, and given Serial No. 346,026, in which there is claimed theapplicants novel method of plugging cables, described hereinbelow.

In certain cases it is advisable that gas pressure be continuouslymaintained in a cable. This gas pressure serves to facilitate thedetection of mechanical defects, such as holes, which occur from time totime in the cable sheath, and to prevent the entrance of water into thecable, which, but for the pressure, might take place before the defectscould be located and repaired. If gas pressure is introduced into andmaintained in a cable for the testing of a section of the cable, it is,of course, necessary that the section under test be isolated by someform of gas I tight plug. The plugging methods which in many respectsappear to be the most satisfactory are based on the idea of wiping asleeve over a broken section of the cable sheath and filling'the sleevewith a molten sealing compound, such as wax. Certain difficulties,however, have been encountered in the application of these pluggingmethods, due to the fact that the sealing compound does not entirelyfill the voids between the cable conductors and the insulatingpaper,.and that the sealing compound, on cooling, shrinks away from theinner surface of the sleeve, thus providing leakage paths by which thegas escapes from the supposedly isolated section of the cable.

The principal object of the applicants invention is the provision ofsuitable apparatus for plugging a cable with a sealing com- .poundwithout the disadvantages indicated above.

A further object of the invention is the'gastight plugging of a cable ina manner which involves a relatively low cost and the minimum ofdifficulty in forming the plugs.

In general, the applicants apparatus consists of a gas-tight container,a conduit, means for introducing gas into the container and forcing thecompound in the container through the conduit, and means for indicatingthe back gas pressure in the container. The apparatus of the inventionwill be clearly understood when the following detailed description isread with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Figure l of the drawings shows a side view, partly in section, of thecontainer and the connections therefrom to a gas tank and to a cablesection, and

Fig. 2 shows a partial'top view of the container.

Like numerals of reference in the two fi ures of the drawings designatecorrespon mg parts. I

With reference to the details of the drawings, the container 3, whichmay have a capacity of 10 quarts, for example, is equipped with aremovable cover 4. This cover 4 can be clamped in place to render thecontainer 3 gas-tight by means of the lugs 5 and 6 and the cross bar 7,which is held in association with the cover 4 by a suitable bol-t, asindicated in Fig. 1. When it is desired to lock the cover 4 in place,the bar 7 is swung under the lugs 5 and 6 and the screw member 8 istightened.

A pipe 9, which has a diameter of inch, for example, extends through thecover 4 to a point near the bottom of the container 3. At the to of thepipe 9 a suitable fitting pro vides or attachment to a flexible hose 13.A short }pipe 10 is also provided, passing throug the cover l. This pipe10 is connected through a three-way cock 11, for example, and a flexiblehose 15 to a gas tank 16. A reducing valve 17, a high pressure gauge 18and a low pressure gauge 19 are associated with the tank 16 and the hose15 as shown.

A handle 12 is secured to the container through holes in the lugs 5 and6, as indi cated. This handle ma be used to hang the container on astrand, or instance.

When a cable is to be plugged, the cable sheath may be cut away over ashort section,

the conductors separated, and a'sleeve wiped over the perforated sectionof the cable. The wax or other suitable sealing compound is heated tothe temperature necessary to render it fluid in the container 3by meansof a splicers furnace, for exam le,-and the cover 4 is clamped securelyin p ace. The level of the molten sealing com ound should beapproximately at the line shown in Fig. 1. The container 3 is raised tothe strand or lowered into the manhole, as the articular case mayrequire, and the hose 13 18 then connected to the sleeve, in which ahole 14 has been drilled, by any suitable means.

The gas from tank 16 is now admitted to the container 3 through pi e 10at a pressure of approximately 30 poun s per square inch, as indicatedon the gauge 19, for a period of two or three seconds, and the com oundis forced up through pipe 9 and to t e cable. At the end of the periodof two or three seconds, the reducing valve 17 is closed to shut ofi thegas at the tank, and the back pressure is indicated at the gauge 19 onthe low ressure side of the reduclng valve. If a ack pressure of 30pounds'is indicated and this pressure remains constant for severalminutes, it may be assumed that the cable has been efi'ectively plugged.If, however, the back pressure falls off, the gas is again admitted tothe container for a period of two or three seconds, and the backpressure is again observed. The operation of admittting the gas to thecontainer 3 for a period of two or three seconds, closing the reducingvalve 17 and then observing for several minutes the back pressureindicated in gauge 19, is repeated until the pressure so indicatedremains constant for the period of several minutes.

While the apparatus of the invention has been specifically disclosed,for the purpose of illustration, it will be undesrtood that theinvention is capable of embodiment in other and different formswithin'its true scope as determined by the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

As a device for introducing a sealing compound into a cable or the liketo form a gastight plug, a gas-tight container adapted to be partlyfilled with a molten sealing compound, a conduit extending from thelower portion of said container through the top thereof and having meansfor connection with the structure to be plugged, means associated withthe upper portion of said container for introducing gas therein at aknown pressure, whereby the compound is forced through said conduit,means associated with said introducing means for interrupting orterminating the introduction of the gas into the container, and meansassociated therewith for indicating the back gas pressure in thecontainer upon the operation of said terminating or interrupting means.

In testimony whereofil have signedmy name to this specification this21st day of May, 1930.

HERMAN BARTENIBAGH.

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